Blacksburg, Va. – The Duquesne University men's basketball team erased a 13-point deficit in the first half and a dunk from senior guard Tarence Guinyard with 43.4 seconds to play snapped an 80-80 tie as the Dukes earned an 83-81 victory in an exhibition game Saturday in Blacksburg, Va., at Cassell Coliseum.
 
POINTS OF EMPHASIS
A pair of free throws from Jaden Schutt gave the Hokies a 78-75 edge with 2:34 to go, but Duquesne closed on an 8-3 surge to earn the victory. Guinyard ignited the deciding run with a three-pointer that tied it, and his dunk on a feed from senior forward David Dixon after a steal gave the Dukes the lead for good. Junior guard Jimmie Williams helped seal the victory by hitting the front end of a pair of free throws with 13.9 seconds remaining. Both Guinyard and Williams scored 21 points to lead Duquesne, with Guinyard adding eight rebounds, six assists and three steals. Combined, the duo hit 14 of their 27 attempts from the field, including 6-for-13 from beyond the arc.
 
OPENING REMARKS
The Hokies hit eight of their first nine shots from the field in the contest, grabbing their first double-digit advantage at the 13:44 mark thanks to a three-pointer from Tobi Lawal, 19-8. It capped an 11-0 run for Virginia Tech after a triple from Guinyard had tied the contest, 8-8. The Dukes chipped away in the final segment of the first half. A three-pointer from Ben Hammond and a dunk from Lawal had given Virginia Tech its biggest lead of the half, 37-24, but Duquesne used a 7-2 burst to close to within 39-34 at the break. Redshirt sophomore Stef van Bussel converted a layup, Guinyard added another and six consecutive points from Jimmie Williams, including a three-pointer, settled the score at the break.
 
ON THE SCENE
Saturday's exhibition marked Duquesne's first visit to Cassell Coliseum since the 2009 National Invitation Tournament (NIT), a game the Hokies won in two overtimes, 116-108. Former guard Aaron Jackson (2005-09) put forth a virtuoso scoring performance for the Dukes, pouring in 46 points while also adding five rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals. He shot 15-of-25 from the field, including 8-for-13 from beyond the arc, and finished 8-for-9 at the free-throw line. The 46 points were the most scored by a member of the Dukes since guard B.B. Flenory dropped 48 in an 85-74 victory over Ohio in Morgantown, W.Va., as part of the West Virginia Classic. The total for Jackson ranks fourth in the Duquesne single-game scoring records and is the last time a member of the Dukes reached the 40-point plateau.
 
UP NEXT
Duquesne will open the 2025-26 regular season with a three-game homestand at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. In the season opener, the Dukes will host Niagara in a 7:00 p.m. tip Monday, Nov. 3. Season and single-game tickets are on sale now.
 
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